Continuous swaging machine



Jan. 16, 1951 Filed Feb. 21, 1948 W. S. REYNOLDS ET AL CONTINUOUS SWAGING MACHINE 5 ShEGtS-SheGt l 36 33 a! b /9 Q) r INVENTORS. WAR/PEA/S/PEYA/OAUS BY Jam/R TOR/VB? Mm mm M mm NW Y m n N W0 0 Jan. 136, 1951 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Feb. 21, 1948 Jan. B6, 1951 w. s. REYNOLDS ET AL 5%? CONTINUOUS SWAGING MACHINE Filed Feb. 21, 1948 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 IN V EN TOR S. WA R/Pf/VS. REY/v04 05 BY OH/V/P. Tum/5R Fig. 7

Patented Jan. 16, 1951 CONTINUOUS SWAGING MACHINE.

Warren S. Reynolds, Westport, and John R.

Turner, Stratford, Conn., assignors to Remington Arms Company, Inc., Bridgeport, Conn, a

corporation of Delaware Application February 21, 1948, Serial No. 10,104

I This invention relates to swaging apparatus, and contemplates certain improvements in the handling of metal slugs to be swaged and in operating devices for swaging tools.

The invention will. be described as applied to scribed, lead slugs are fed from a stationary hopper to swaging tools carried upon a continuously revolving turret. After swaging, the formed bullets are transferred to suitable holders on a conveyor chainwhich engages a sprocket secured to the turret, and are removed from the chain in another unit which is not part of the present invention. The turret may either drive or be driven by the conveyor chain.

In the drawings Fig. 1 is a fragmentary sectional elevation of the upper or hopper portion of the machine, showing the slugaligning and upper swaging punch driving and controlling devices.

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary sectional elevation of an intermediate portion of the machine, showing the slug transfer and swaging tools.

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary sectional elevation substantially on the line 3--3 of Fig. 1, showing a detail of the upper swaging' tool operating devices.

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary horizontal section substantially on the line 4-4 of Fig. 1, showing the escapement devices for delivering slugs one at a time.

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary sectional elevation showing a second position of the escapement devices.

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary horizontal section substantially on the line 6-6 of Fig. 2, showing the details of the means for transferring slugs into alignment with the swaging tools; certain parts have been omitted, for greater clearness.

Fig. '7 is a detailed sectional elevation showing the relationship of the swaging tools to the work piece holders on the conveyor chain.

Fig. 8 is a fragmentary plan view of a portion of a conveyor chain, showing one form of work piece holding device.

- Fi 9 is a view similar to Fig. 8, showing a modified form of work holdin device.

18 Claims. (Cl. 78-96) The stationary frame of the machine comprises a base portion I0 having upstanding therefrom a generally cylindrical hollow boss ll which partially supports the revolving turret. Associated with the base It are a plurality of vertically disposed columns or posts l2 which form supports fora stationary hopper, identified generally by the numeral l3, and associated parts. The hopper comprises a central conical portion I l and an outwardly flaring portion 15 connected to the central cone by appropriate webs it. The junction of the surfaces I4 and i5 is an annular open slot. The lower central portion of the hopper is extended downwardly to form a generally cylindrical boss [1, the axis of which is inclined to the vertical. To the exterior inclined cylindrical surface of boss I! is secured, by suitable means, the supporting ring l8 of a roller bearing. Said central lower portion of the hopper is fur ther extended, downwardly in a cylindrical member l9 which is concentric with the axis of the revolving turret and has integral therewith or rigidly secured thereto the cylindrical cam 2%.

The revolving turret comprises a vertically and centrally disposed post or spindle 2] having hearing supports at 22 in the fixed base It and its boss H, and a similar support 23 in the vertically disposed cylindrical boss l9. To the spindle 2! are secured various members which constitute supports for the working parts of the turret. One such support is the frame 24 which comprises a late 25 apertured to form bearings for a plurality of thrust rods or tool holders 26 which are symmetrically disposed about the entire periphcry of the turret. As shown in Fig. 3, the tool holding rods 26 are arranged in pairs, the upper ends of each pair being secured in a block 21 which carries a cam following roller 28 adapted for upward displacement by the upwardly facing cam surface 29 of cam 20. It will be obvious that the tool holders can be arranged for common actuation in groups of any desired number.

The downward or working stroke of each pair of tool holders 26 is effected by the followin means:

Each connecting block 21 comprises an up wardly facing substantially hemispherical recess 3|] which receives a bearing ball 3 I. A cam plate 32 is mounted through roller bearings 33 on the fixed inclined boss I1, and thus revolves in any inclined plane. The upper and outer portion of cam plate 32 comprises supports for rollers 34 which engage a hardened bearing ring 35 secured in a'downwardly facing but inclined part of the fixed hopper IS. The working face of bearing ring is at 90 to the bearing supporting face of the boss H. The lower face of plate 52 comprises recesses 3-6 which receive the upper portions of the thrust transmitting balls 3 l. Due to the inclination of cam plate 32, as described, in the revolution of the turret, each tool holding block 2'! is in turn moved downward to the position illustrated in the left portion of Fig. l, and thereafter permitted to be moved upwardly to the position illustrated in the right portion of Fig. 1, said upward movement being effected by cam 22:.

The tools carried at the lower ends of the tool holders 26 operate on slugs which are delivered one at a time from the hopper 13 to transfer devices to be described. For so removing slugs from hopper E3, the annular gap at the bottom of the trough formed by hopper surfaces M and 15, respectively, is closed by an annular member 3'! associated and revolving with the turret. Said member 3'! comprises a plurality of tubular passages 3% corresponding in number and associated with the tool holders 25. The upper endsef passages 38 are circumferentially enlarged in a manner familiar in the art to facilitate the entrance of slugs from the hopper into such passages. The slugs are rough cast or cut pieces of the general configuration of a cylinder with hemispherical ends, and it is desirable that they be delivered to the transfer devices one at a time. For this purpose, suitable escapement mechanism may be applied to the lower end of each passage 38. As shown in Figs. 1, 4 and 5, a ring bracket 40 secured to the turret carries on pivot studs 4! a series of pairs of escapement pawls, one pair for each passage 33. Each upper pawl 22 carries on a stud 43 a cam following roller G5 which is urged by a spring 16 into engagement with the surface of a cam ring if supported on the main columns !2. Each lower pawl 4:8 is similarly pivoted and carries a cam following roller 59 urged by a similar spring into contact with surface on said cam ring 4?. Each of the pawls comprises a nose portion arranged to extend into a tubular passage 5! through bracket 40, which passage is aligned with passage 38. One position of the pawls is illustrated in Fig. 1, and the reverse position is shown in Fig. 5. It will be obvious that, by appropriate design of the cam surfaces 4'! and 5c, the pawls may be shifted to deliver individual slugs, while retaining a column of slugs in passage 38, in any desired timed relation to the operation of other parts of the machine. The slugs thus individually released from the passages 38 and 5! are received in a delivery tube 52, from which they are conducted to the transfer devices.

At their lower ends, tool holders 25 receive swaging punches 53 which reciprocate through bushings 54 in a sprocket wheel 55 secured to the turret. Said punches are in vertical alignment with the apertures of swaging dies 56 held beneath the sprocket wheel and spaced therefrom in a member likewise secured. to the turret. A swaging stem 57 extends upwardly through the die aperture, being carried in a holder 58 which is reciprocated in proper timed relation to the movement of the swaging punch. Holders 58 are preferably arranged in pairs, like holders 25, the members of each pair being received in a crosshead 59 which carries a cam following roller 68 arranged to be vertically reciprocated by a cam 6| secured to the fixed boss H. Preferably, the lower end of each swaging stem holder 58 bottoms upon an adjustable set screw 62 during the actual swaging operation.

The slug delivering tubes 52 terminate in bushings 63 carried in apertures in sprocket wheel 55, which apertures are radially inward from the swaging punches 53. Each slug in turn drops through bushing 53 and into the fingers of a transfer device, best illustrated in Figs. 1 and 6. Said transfer devices are preferably arranged in pairs or groups of any desired number, each group having one operator. The device illustrated comprises a radially disposed and forked bar 64 having at its inner end a depending portion 65 which carries a cam roller 66 controlled by a cam track 61 secured to the fixed boss I i. The outer forked end of member 64 comprises a shelf 68 upon which are pivoted the gripping transfer fingers 69, which fingers are urged apart and into effective position by suitable means, such as spring l9 interposed between them. The end portions ll of the two arms of the fork are cut back, as

clearly shown in Fig. 6, so that, in conjunction with the end portions of fingers 69, they form pockets or recesses in which slugs are loosely received, the outward movement of fingers 59 being limited by their lateral engagement with the adjacent faces of the arms of the fork. The circumferential spacing of said slug receiving pockets conforms to the spacing of adjacent slug delivering bushings 53 and tubes 52. A transfer device is shown in Fig. 2 and at the left of Fig. 6 in slug-receiving position, and at the right of Fig. 6 in slug-delivering position. Said device being in the latter position, the swaging punches descend to the position shown in Fig. 2, moving the slug downward into the swaging die and, in

, cooperation with the swaging stem 5!, performing the swaging operation. The die is, of course, provided with the usual vent (not shown) for permitting extrusion of the excess metal.

It is noted in passing that the timing of cam 6| is such that each swaging stem 51 is elevated into engagement with a slug in the transfer fingers before said slug is moved by the descent of the swaging punch 53, and that, during a substantial part of the movement of the slug into the die, stem 51 and punch 53 move in unison,

thus positively controlling the movement of the slug. Downward movement of each stem 51 is concluded when the lower end of its holder 58 comes into engagement with set screw 62, and downward movement of the associated punch 53 continues thereafter to perform the swaging operation.

Each slug or workpiece, swaged to a configuration determined by the contour of the die, punch and stem, is ejected from the die by the upward movement in unison of stem 57 and punch 53; and is received in a suitable receptacle carried by a conveyor chain comprising links 15 which engage the teeth of sprocket 55 as heretofore in-' dicated and as illustrated in the aforementioned patent to Johnson. The sprocket chain transverses and forms a connection between several units, each having a different function with respect to the work. One such function isthe removal from the conveyor chain receptacles (to be presently described) of the swa'ged bullets which are inserted in such receptacles in the bullet swaging unit which is the subject of the present invention; other units are not described since they are not part of the present invention. It is sufficient to say that the chain is driven from any suitable source of power applied to the chain at any convenient point. It may, for example, be driven by sprocket 55, power being supplied to any convenient part of the turret. Since the chain emsavor braces several units, it traverses a pa t only 'o sprocket 55, approaching and receding from this part of sprocket '55 tangentially. Certain mech-' anisms to be described operate in timed relation to the approach of the chain and its succession of work-holders to successive sectors of sprocket 55 and the turret which rotates therewith.

A preferred form of chain and workpiece re ceptacle is shown in Figs. 8 andQ. The chain comprises conventional'links i5 and pivot pins 16. At appropriate intervals, there are secured to the chain, to extend laterally from its lower portion, workpiece holders 1'! comprising work:- piece receiving receptacles 18. The portion of each holder "H forming the lateral open recep: tacle 18 is preferably of a resilient material, such as rubber or neoprene. The inclination of the opening into the receptacle '18 is such that as the chain approaches the turret the mouth of the receptacle snaps over and embraces a lowered swaging punch 53. The parts being in this relationship, the formed bullet or other workpiece is ejected upwardly from the die and into the receptacle F8, in which it remains, as illustrated in Fig. '7; the swaging punch and stem being thereafter retired, and the workpiece being carried away from the turret the conveyor chain as the chain recedes from the turret.

A modified form of workpiece receptacle for the chain is illustrated in Fig, 9. here shown, the re eptacle c mp ses a strap or ban of spring metal, which encircles extens ns of wo adjacent chain pivots l5. Said spring metal band terminates, as shown,jin a workpiece receiving pocket 81 having ar i open mouth adjaev cent which th d portions of the metal are out" wardly turned, as shown at 82,, to facilita e sn pping over a swaging punch 53'. l

The operation of the machine rnay be summarized as follows:

The bullet slugs to beiswaged are introduced into the hopper 53. Due to the relative. movement of the turret piece 31 in the bottom of the V formed by surfaces l4 and I5, said bullets are sufiiciently agitated to drop endwise into the passages 38, forming a column therein. Once during each revolution of the turret, the escapement pawls 42 and 48 are shifted from the Fig. position to the Fig. 1 position and back again to the Fig. 5 position, thus permitting one slug to escape from each passage 38 into the associated delivery tube 52, through which it falls to the transfer device beneath the sprocket wheel 55. At the time of such slug delivery, the transfer devices are in the position shown in Fig. 2, and each slug drops into a transfer device receptacle formed by fork end H and associated finger 69; but, should the transfer device be displaced, the slug merely comes to rest upon the upper surface of the fork and awaits the return of the fork to slug-receivingposition. Each transfer device in turn, being in a positionin which the portion of sprocket 55 on the same radius is not engaged by the conveyor chain, is advanced through the engagement of its camroller 66 with cam 87 to bringthe slugs held therein into alignment with V the swaging die and, theslugs being held in this position, swaging punch 53 and swaging stem 51 are actuated to first transfer the slug into the die 56 and then swage it. At this point, the transfer device is retracted to its Fig. 2 position, the spring in being compressed as the fingers 69 are displaced to pass the diameter of the swaging punch, Thereafter, each transfer punch is embraced by a workpiece holder 11 on the conveyor chain and,

while: ir'ithi's position, swaging. punch and swag ing stem are again actuated to move the swage'd workpiece into holder 'l'l, after which the stem and punch are retracted, to permit the workpiece to be carried away by the chain.

The particular structures and parts above described are, of course, susceptible to modification and" variation.

What is claimed is:

1. In a machine for the swaging and delivery of bullets into receptacles in a conveyor chain, a continuously revolving vertically disposed turret, a stationary hopper comprising an annular opening concentric with said turret, swaging tool holders mounted for vertical reciprocation in said turret, meansfor moving said tool holders upwardly comprising a fixed cam, and means for moving said tool holders downwardly comprising a plate mounted for revolution on an inclined axis. j

,2. In a machine for mechanical processing, of

workpieces, a workpiece conveyor, a turret rotatable by said conveyor, a plurality of tool holders reciprocably mounted in said turret, tool holder retracting means comprising a fixed cam, and tool holder advancing means comprising a plate mounted for rotation on an axis inclined to the axis of said turret. 3. In a machine for mechanical processing of workpieces, a workpiece conveyor, a turret rotatable by said conveyor, a plurality of tool holders each comprising a ball receiving socket reciprocably mounted in said turret, tool holder retracting means c mpris ng a fixed cam, and tool holdor advancing means comprising a plate mounted for rotation on an axis inclined. to the axis of said turret.

4, Apparatus for withdrawing workpieces from a mass and delivering such workpieces in an ordered sequence comprising a fixed hopper bowl having an inwardly and downwardly sloping frusto conical wall, a fixed hopper base having an outwardly and downwardly sloping wall, the lower margins of said walls defining an annular opening, a movable member extending into and substantially closing said opening, and a plurali ty of workpiece receiving passages in said moving member.

5. Apparatus according to claim 4 in which a plurality of workpiece receiving tubular members are associated respectively with said passages.

6. Apparatus for withdrawing workpieces from a mass and delivering such workpieces in an ordered sequence comprising a fixed workpiece holder hopper having walls defining an annular opening, a continuously moving turret comprising a member extending into and substantially closing said opening, a plurality of workpiece receiving passages in said member, and a plurality of workpiece transfer devices associated with said passages.

7. Apparatus for delivering an ordered arrangement of workpieces from a mass of such pieces and performing an operation thereon comprising a vertically disposed fixed hopper provided with a conical bottom and adapted to hold a mass of workpieces, a continuously moving workpiece receiving member at the periphery of said conical hopper bottom having therein a plurality of passages each adapted to receive workpieces from said hopper, an inclined boss associated with said hopper forming a bearing support, a tool actuating member mounted for rotation on said inplurality of substantially hemispherical sockets each adapted to receive a ball member associated with an actuated tool.

10. Apparatus according to claim 9 in which said tools are supported with the ball members in bearing engagement in said sockets by the engagement of rollers associated with said tools with a fixed track in spaced and parallel relation to the downwardly facing surface on said hopper.

11. Apparatus according to claim 10 in which the tools are arranged in groups, the tools of each group being joined by a crosshead, each crosshead comprising a ball receiving recess and having associated therewith a roller engaging said track.

12. Apparatus for the swaging of bullets comprising a continuously revolving turret, a conveyor in operative engagement with said turret, individual bullet receptacles on said conveyor, a slug-containing member on said turret, a swaging die on said turret, means for transferring workpieces one at a time from said containing membar to said die, means on said turret for swaging a slug in said die into a bullet, and means for ejecting the swaged bullet from said die into a receptacle on said conveyor.

13. Apparatus according to claim 12 in which the swaging means comprises a lower reciprocable supporting and ejecting stem and an upper reciprocable feeding and swaging punch.

the bullet receptacles on the conveyor come into bullet-receiving position while said punch is advanced and in so doing embrace the shank of said punch.

17. Apparatus according to claim 15 in which the bullet receptacles on said conveyor are spring fingers adapted to spread and embrace the shank of said punch while said punch is in its lowered bullet swaging position. I

18. Apparatus according to claim 15 in which the supporting and ejecting stem and the swaging punch are lifted in unison to deliver a swaged bullet to a conveyor receptacle and thereafter retired to clear the bullet in said receptacle.

WARREN s. REYNOLDS. JOHN R. TURNER.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS V 

